Apple Watch Series 4 Announced

At today’s Apple Special Event, Apple announced the Apple Watch Series 4.

The Series 4 watch will come in two sizes, 40mm and 44mm, that both feature screens that are "over 30 percent larger" than previous Apple Watches, with the screen now going completely to the edges of the watch. There have been minimal changes to the overall case size, but it’s thinner and has less total volume than the Series 3.

It includes a digital crown that is reenginered with haptic feedback that gives physical clicking sensations while scrolling and a speaker that is 50 percent louder than previous watches.

Apple Watch Series 4 will begin at $399 US for the GPS model, and $499 US for the cellular equipped model. The Series 3 line will now start at $279. Orders for the Apple Watch Series 4 begin this Friday, and shipping starts on September 21. The Series 4 GPS will be available in 26 markets at launch, and cellular in 16 markets with 34 carriers. WatchOS 5 will become available on September 17.

Apple Watch Series 4 First Look

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Apple Watch Series 4 First Look

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Apple Watch Series 4 First Look

Apple Watch Series 4 First Look

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Available colors that were used for previous Apple Watches include silver, gold and space grey. New finishes include stainless and gold stainless variations.

The Series 4 includes a user interface redesign that comes with new complications (essentially quick access to watch applications) - one watch face can even include eight complications at once. Now third-party apps can be made into complications, allowing users to access information for things like scores in sporting events, airplane schedules and more. The dynamic new interface can include moving images like fire, water and vapor variants, among others.

With its dual-core, S4 chip it reportedly runs 2X faster than the Series 3, with a much more advanced accelerometer and gyroscope that reportedly runs data 8X faster. These technologies are advanced enough to detect if a user suffers from a fall, and will alert the user’s emergency contacts using the built in S.O.S. feature if they don’t get back up quickly.

Heart monitoring is a major focus for the Series 4, and includes three new heart features. It can now notify users if their heart rate drops too low. It can also screen heart rhythms, detecting serious conditions like A-Fib. Lastly, the watch face can now be used to generate an electrocardiogram by placing a finger on the digital crown.

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To generate an ECG, it creates a closed circuit on the watch face, only taking 30 seconds for an accurate reading. It gives users heart rhythm classifications and heart profiles can be stored in the health app. Usefully, this heart profile can be made into a convenient PDF to show to your doctor. Heart features on the Series 4 have been approved by the American Heart Association and have clearance from the FDA.

Like the Series 3, it includes cellular, GPS, is swim-proof and includes Watch OS5. It even has the same all-day battery life of 18-hours and an active outdoor workout life of 6-hours using GPS tracking. The Series 4 can use the old Apple Watch bands of previous models, so users that already have a collection built up won’t have to start from scratch.